Skip to main content

Senator Clinton Releases Energy Policy Plan

In a speech yesterday in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Senator Hillary Clinton laid out her energy policy for her presidential campaign. Here's the passage on nuclear energy (PDF):
Addressing Nuclear Power: Hillary believes that energy efficiency and renewables are better options for addressing global warming and meeting our future power needs, because of significant unresolved concerns about the cost of producing nuclear power, the safety of operating plants, waste disposal, and nuclear proliferation. Hillary opposes new subsidies for nuclear power, but believes that we need to take additional steps to deal with the problems facing nuclear power. She would strengthen the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and direct it to improve safety and security at nuclear power plants; terminate work at the flawed Yucca Mountain site and convene a panel of scientific experts to explore alternatives for disposing of nuclear waste; and continue research, with a focus on lower costs and improving safety.
For other Clinton items from our archives, click here.

UPDATE: Some reactions here and here.

ANOTHER UPDATE: More here.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Ah ... so she would take us back in time to ... well ... the 90's.

It's interesting to see that her plan for nuclear energy so closely resembles her husband's: that is, it's a plan to do nothing. At least the Clintons are a consistent pair.

So much for being "agnostic."
Anonymous said…
A vote FOR a Democrat is a vote AGAINST nuclear power.

If Clinton gets in office, then there will be NO new nukes, and it's unlikely that IPEC or VY will conitune to operate.

I've told you this before: don't ingratiate yourselves before these people. Simply defeat them in 2008.
Anonymous said…
I've written a post on my blog with my admittedly contrarian analysis of Sen. Clinton's position on nuclear power. Long story short, I think she's far more reasonable than she appears.
Anonymous said…
In other words, making vague promises to nuclear supporters while appeasing the anti nuclear fring by throttling any real progress. If others don't I still remember what another Clinton did in the 90's concerning nuclear developement.
Anonymous said…
Somebody should tell Hillary's advisors about the Swedish experience with their "30-year phase out" of nuclear power.
Anonymous said…
Anonymous:

With respect, you're being unrealistic. A strategy for the nuclear industry that relies on keeping Democrats out of office forever won't work any better any more than a plan to introduce (to pick an example of an issue that the American left would dearly love to see happen) single-payer healthcare that relies on keeping Republicans out of office forever.

From what I can tell, at this point in time Senator Clinton is more likely than any other person to be the next President of the United States. Furthermore, there's not much you, or anyone that reads this blog can do about it; the number of people motivated to vote, donate, or or mobilise on nuclear energy, is tiny.

As Sovietologist points out, Hillary's left herself all manner of wiggle room on nuclear power. That's a world away from, say, John Edwards. And it's simply not true that left-of-center governments won't ever support nuclear; Tony Blair and Gordon Brown have fought their party's base tooth and nail to get new nuclear power on the agenda in Britain.

Anyway there's a choice; work with Democrats as best you can (who aren't monolithic on the issue), or don't work with them and get frozen out of the debate entirely.
Anonymous said…
Told ya. Hillary! is anti-nuke at heart. Any intimations to the contrary are just pandering.

What did the Clintons do for (to?) nuclear power in the '90s? How about canceling the IFR at Idaho? Their bag-man Bill Richardson killed the HFBR at Brookhaven Lab. Clinton's first speech to Congress noted that the government wasn't going to be doing some things anymore, "like nuclear power development". Yep, they sure did a lot.
Anonymous said…
Robert Merkel,

I respect your opinion, but I'll never vote Democrat anyways, nor will I ingratiate myself with liberals. It is also unlikely I'll vote Republican in the upcoming election, especially if Rudy wins the Republican primaries. There are moral issues that trump nuclear power, although I still won't vote for any candidate who is anti-nuke. I probably will vote Constitution Party - they are closest to how I feel politically. Sadly, their candidate won't get elected, but it's my vote and it won't go to either Rudy or Hillary, even though Rudy is pro-nuclear. As I said, there other other issues (moral in nature) that require this course of action.
Ian Rees said…
Anonymous, if it's what you believe, sign it with your name.

Popular posts from this blog

Fluor Invests in NuScale

You know, it’s kind of sad that no one is willing to invest in nuclear energy anymore. Wait, what? NuScale Power celebrated the news of its company-saving $30 million investment from Fluor Corp. Thursday morning with a press conference in Washington, D.C. Fluor is a design, engineering and construction company involved with some 20 plants in the 70s and 80s, but it has not held interest in a nuclear energy company until now. Fluor, which has deep roots in the nuclear industry, is betting big on small-scale nuclear energy with its NuScale investment. "It's become a serious contender in the last decade or so," John Hopkins, [Fluor’s group president in charge of new ventures], said. And that brings us to NuScale, which had run into some dark days – maybe not as dark as, say, Solyndra, but dire enough : Earlier this year, the Securities Exchange Commission filed an action against NuScale's lead investor, The Michael Kenwood Group. The firm "misap

An Ohio School Board Is Working to Save Nuclear Plants

Ohio faces a decision soon about its two nuclear reactors, Davis-Besse and Perry, and on Wednesday, neighbors of one of those plants issued a cry for help. The reactors’ problem is that the price of electricity they sell on the high-voltage grid is depressed, mostly because of a surplus of natural gas. And the reactors do not get any revenue for the other benefits they provide. Some of those benefits are regional – emissions-free electricity, reliability with months of fuel on-site, and diversity in case of problems or price spikes with gas or coal, state and federal payroll taxes, and national economic stimulus as the plants buy fuel, supplies and services. Some of the benefits are highly localized, including employment and property taxes. One locality is already feeling the pinch: Oak Harbor on Lake Erie, home to Davis-Besse. The town has a middle school in a building that is 106 years old, and an elementary school from the 1950s, and on May 2 was scheduled to have a referendu

Wednesday Update

From NEI’s Japan micro-site: NRC, Industry Concur on Many Post-Fukushima Actions Industry/Regulatory/Political Issues • There is a “great deal of alignment” between the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the industry on initial steps to take at America’s nuclear energy facilities in response to the nuclear accident in Japan, Charles Pardee, the chief operating officer of Exelon Generation Co., said at an agency briefing today. The briefing gave stakeholders an opportunity to discuss staff recommendations for near-term actions the agency may take at U.S. facilities. PowerPoint slides from the meeting are on the NRC website. • The International Atomic Energy Agency board has approved a plan that calls for inspectors to evaluate reactor safety at nuclear energy facilities every three years. Governments may opt out of having their country’s facilities inspected. Also approved were plans to maintain a rapid response team of experts ready to assist facility operators recoverin